Homemade Magnum Ice Creams {Vegan, RSF}

Can you believe it’s April already? Where has this year gone? Did I just get married? I believe I did.

Hopefully right now I am relaxing on a beach in Bali recovering from the pre-wedding madness. I tried to get a few posts in the pipeline so I could give my husband (eek need to get used to saying that) a week of blog free, iPhone free, laptop free bliss. Fingers crossed I last!

This recipe is from a few weeks ago where I tried to make my all time favourite packaged ice cream – the magnum. On every single car trip, my mister knows its best he doesn’t return from the filling the car without a magnum (usually almond) in hand. I do usually avoid looking at the ingredient list as most processed ice creams have a long list of ingredients that can barely be defined as food. Skim Milk Concentrate, Glucose Syrup, Vegetable Origin Emulsifier, Vegetable Gum and Dextrose Monohydrate to name a few – I don’t even know what most of those are and I can certainly say they aren’t readily available at the supermarket which means I really shouldn’t be eating them.

I love making healthier versions of my favourite treats and magnums have been on my list for a while. It always seems daunting re-making processed foods especially if you are attempting to make them without sugar, which is more often than not the main ingredient. It wasn’t easy coming up with the winning combination but I am pretty happy with the final outcome. I based the recipe off A Conscious Collection’s popsicle recipe, check her blog out for beautiful and inventive healthy recipes that are as decadent as they are guilt free. She’s such an inspiration!

The ice cream in this recipe has only 4 ingredients and the chocolate is not far behind either. Gotta love how easy it is too!

Don’t let how easy these are to make fool you, they will take you to ice cream wonderland. How can they not with a decadent ice cream centre and dipped in not one but TWO borderline inappropriately thick layers of chocolate? And that’s just the classic version.

The choc mint one has a refreshing, creamy and minty center that screams EAT ME!

But the real indulgent one is the double chocolate. It’s so ridiculously rich that I was barely able to get through it. Oh who am I kidding? Of course I did.

Although these are so easy to make, I do have a few tips for success. First, make sure you use a good quality blender to blend the ice cream ingredients. This will ensure a soft and creamy centre. There is nothing sexy about chunks of banana in your magnum.

Secondly don’t freak out that the chocolate is too runny, I promise you it will freeze on the sides of the ice creams. I know this because I was sure I didn’t put enough cocao in the mixture and proceeded to add more until it was a clumpy hot mess. And as a food blogger that was rather embarrassing.

My last tip is don’t stress too much about how they end up looking. I fussed for days over mine looking a complete mess but they all went like hotcakes and let’s face it, any ice cream is good ice cream. And p.s if you want to make a magnum almond, don’t forget to buy the almonds – like me!

Best of luck and be sure to let me know how you go in the comments.

Don’t forget to hashtag #cookwiththemacadames when making our recipes. We love to see how you went and get a peek at your kitchen table.

Method:

For the ice cream: Pop the ice cream ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into ice cream moulds, add your sticks and pop into the freezer to set overnight.

For the chocolate: Put all the ingredients into a pan and heat on a very low heat until you create a smooth consistency. Be careful not to burn/overcook.

When you get the ice creams out, allow to defrost for a few minutes so they come out of the moulds easily. Alternatively run the moulds under hot water to loosen the edges.

To make the magnum…

Classic:

Dip the ice cream into a bowl of chocolate. Use a icing knife to smooth out any edges but be quick because it should set almost immediately. Repeat to create a nice thick layer of chocolate. Pop back into the freezer for a few minutes to completely freeze. Enjoy!

Almond:

As per Magnum Classic, but add a handful of slithered almonds to sandwich between chocolate layers.

Peppermint:

As per Magnum Classic, but add 1 tablepoon of mint extract (or to taste), a handful of fresh mint and a few drops of green food colouring/spirulina to the ice cream mixture.

Double chocolate:

As per Magnum Classic, but add 3 tablespoons of cacao to the chocolate mixture and 1-2 tablespoons of cacao powder to the ice cream mixture.

Storage: in a freezer safe container in the freezer for up to 5 days.

Notes:

*The coconut milk should be full fat as this will ensure a creamier ice cream. Don’t go for the light options.